COAL- Basics

COAL FOSSIL FUELCoal, solid, usually brown or black, carbon-rich material that most often occurs in stratified sedimentary deposits. It is one of the most important of the primary fossil fuels. Noted coal geologist James Morton Schopf defined coal as containing more than 50 percent by weight (or 70 percent by volume) carbonaceous matter produced by the compaction and induration of altered plant remains—namely, peat deposits. Different varieties of coal arise because of…Read more>>britannica.com

WHAT IS COAL?Coal formation began during the Carboniferous Period – known as the first coal age – which spanned 360 million to 290 million years ago…Read more>> worldcoal.org/coal

Coal is a fossil fuel created from the remains of plants that lived and died about 100 to 400 million years ago when parts of the earth were covered with huge swampy forests. Coal is classified as a nonrenewable energy source because it takes millions of years to form.

Most coal formed approximately 300 million years ago, from the remains of trees and other vegetation. These remains were trapped on the bottom of swamps, accumulating layer after layer and creating a dense material called peat. As this peat was buried under more and more ground, the high temperatures and pressure transformed it into coal…Learn more>> zmescience.com

It’s Far More Than A Black Rock! If you think that coal is a boring black rock then you have never seen it through a transmitted light microscope. The microscope reveals coal’s hidden beauty as well as its organic composition… For more pictures and story>>geology.com

Which States Produce The Most Coal?In 2015, about 897 million short tons of coal were produced in 25 states. Five states produced a total of about 639 million short tons, or about 71% of total U.S. coal production. The five largest coal producing states with production in million short tons and the share of total U.S. coal production in 2015:– Wyoming: 375.8 (42%)– West Virginia: 95.6 (11%)– Kentucky: 61.4 (7%)– Illinois: 56.1 (6%)– Pennsylvania: 50.0 (6%)

Mining Methods- Coal is mined by two methods: SURFACE MINING and UNDERGROUND MINING

Surface mining – also known as opencast or opencut mining – is only economic when the coal seam is near the surface.

Large opencast mines can cover an area of many square kilometres and use very large pieces of equipment can cover an area of many square kilometres and use very large pieces of equipment, such as draglines, power shovels, large trucks, bucket wheel excavators and conveyors.